The Edmonton Oilers game on Friday marked two special occasions for their two great superstars. Leon Draisaitl played his 600th NHL game, Connor McDavid celebrated his 26th birthday. Both were allowed to celebrate the day appropriately. In the Oilers’ dominant 7-1 away win over the San Jose Sharks, Draisaitl had a goal and two assists while McDavid had two goals and an assist.
As is so often the case, the two exceptional talents were the focus of the game. First, the German national player prepared the 1-0 of his Canadian colleague in the power play (11th). In the second third, Draisaitl assisted McDavid again with a majority to make it 3-0 (29th). Towards the end of the period, McDavid took revenge by assisting Draisaitls to make it 5-0 (38′). Klim Kostin (19.), Ryan Nugent-Hopkins (34.; SH), Jesse Puljujarvi (53.) and Ryan McLeod (53.) provided the remaining goals. Oscar Lindblom (56) scored the Sharks’ only goal.
Video: EDM 7, SJS 1
Edmonton’s elite forwards underlined their dominance. McDavid leads the NHL with 82 points, 37 goals and 45 assists in all three categories. Draisaitl follows in second place with 66 points, fourth with 42 assists and 14th with 24 goals. McDavid is the first player since the 1995-96 season to reach 80 points in 44 games.
The son of German ice hockey legend Peter Draisaitl was selected in the first round of the 2014 NHL Draft with the third pick by the Oilers. Since then he has 682 points (278 goals, 404 assists). Only McDavid (776), Patrick Kane (714) and Sidney Crosby (688) scored more points in this period. He is eighth in assists and third behind in goals Alex Ovechkin (387) and Auston Matthews (279). His achievements earned him the 2020 Ted Lindsay Award, Art Ross Trophy, and Hart Memorial Trophy.
Video: EDM@SJS: McDavid uses the power play
McDavid and Draisaitl’s contributions are currently helping the Oilers turn the tide. In their last five games, Edmonton are 3-1-1, have picked up seven points from a possible ten and have had a goal difference of 22-14. McDavid contributed four goals and five assists in those games, while Draisaitl had three goals and five assists. Prior to this positive development in the past five games, the Oilers were 4-5-2 in 11 games and 45.5 percent of points hauled.
The lack of consistency leaves the Oilers in an uncertain position. With the most recent win, they drew level with the Calgary Flames (20-14-9) on 49 points (23-18-3). The bitter rivals occupy the two wildcard spots in the Western Conference. Both separate five points from the Seattle Kraken (24-12-4), who hold third place in the Pacific Division.
With two of the best forwards in the world in their ranks, offense is no problem for the Oilers. 3.64 goals per game is the fourth-best offense in the NHL. The defense, on the other hand, is in 20th place with 3.3 goals conceded per game. The 7-1 win against the Sharks clearly showed what the team is capable of when the defense is right.
Video: EDM@SJS: Campbell stops Vlasic with the catch hand
“That’s definitely something we wanted to work on,” Nugent-Hopkins said of the defensive performance. “In the first half of the season it was of course difficult to win in this league when you regularly concede four or five goals in a game. It takes a solid team performance and the fact that we managed to reduce the number of goals against is a good thing Signs. But it’s not easy and just because we’ve been able to do that for a week doesn’t mean it’s going to continue like this. We have to keep our foot on the gas and keep moving in the right direction.”
The big challenge for coach Jay Woodcroft is to constantly get this level from his team. McDavid wants to make the next mark as early as Saturday when the Oilers visit the Vegas Golden Knights (10 pm ET; NHL.tv; Sun. 4 pm ET).
“We definitely have to build on this game and the two good games in a row,” said the captain. “We always talk about consistency, of course, so that was a good sign, but there’s a challenge tomorrow night in Vegas that will give us some ground to gain ground. It’s going to be an important game.”